Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist. Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind. – Ralph Waldo Emerson
Relative progress has been made in human behavior and in problem solving over the millennia, however, the fundamental cause of all of the problems facing humanity is still functioning as it always has. The ultimate frontier for each of us as individuals and collectively is to ask more profound questions and change our modus operandi from one based in the intellect to one based on our inner wisdom.
By affirming our progress in P-B we can honor past human achievements while at the same time embrace the realization that the time has come for a shift in paradigm.
VALUES IN P-B:
- making or having lots of money
- climbing the ladder of success with measurable steps toward one’s goals
- “looking good” or being stylish (e.g. smoking is or was a glamorous behavior)
- “when the going gets tough, the tough go shopping”
- having lots of choices (as a consumer, as a voter, or on the job)
- being on top of the latest trends, styles, and innovations (as a consumer or on the job)
- supporting economic and technological programs at the national level
- rejecting the values and concerns of native peoples, rural people, Traditionals, New Agers, or religious mystics
THE HUMAN INTELLECT IN P-B HAS FOUND WAYS TO:
- diminish toil
- harness the elements
- reduce plagues and illnesses
- create plenty and then distribute it
- house and feed an exploding population
- create effective and productive organizations
- build more universal standards of morality and social practices
- come to terms with increasing social complexity
Even though the “relative” progress we have made so far is impressive, the intellect is incapable of creating a sustainable human community without the guidance of our inner wisdom. For that we need a paradigm shift.
In preparation for the paradigm shift it would be good to exercise the mind by looking at conventional problems and positing unconventional solutions. It is time for divergent thinking on our way to transcendence. First a few “pictures” of problem areas to suggest that there are alternative ways of looking at our institutions and how they function. What would some “snapshots” of a few major American institutions reveal?
| HEALTHCARE | ||
| Photo #1 | Death is the enemy | |
| Photo #2 | Pain is associated with failure | |
| The human behavior that is indicated by the two snapshots reveals that death is not dealt with in a realistic way but denied and that until recently at least (2000), palliative care was available in some hospitals and not others. Pain was and is still not universally effectively managed causing some patients to suffer unnecessary pain. | ||
| RELIGION | ||
| Photo #1 | Original sin | |
| Photo #2 | People are fundamentally morally flawed, some even evil and many are destined for hell considered by many religions to be an actual place in time and space. | |
| Many people feel defeated by life, living in the past, feeling guilt, shame and inadequacy, or with little to look forward to in a future riddled with anxiety. As they internalize the message that day-to-day life is to be lived in the anticipation of a future reward, they disconnect from the only way a vital and truly meaningful life can be lived—in the present moment. | ||
| EDUCATION | ||
| Photo #1 | Intelligence is objectively definable and measurable | |
| Photo #2 | All children learn the same way or can be taught the same way. The child’s physical body and emotions are not given the attention that is given to the child’s mind. | |
| Many children intuitively know that the longer they are in school the less their uniqueness as an individual matters or is recognized. They can increasingly become alienated from their teachers, each other and most importantly, from themselves as they participate in an essentially dehumanizing system. | ||
| POLITICS | ||
| Photo #1 | Keeping the special interests that fund political campaigns happy | |
| Photo #2 | Use political connections to create a lifelong, lucrative career | |
| Politics is about power. Partisan and ruthless competition takes place among political and religious idealogues who address the symptoms of problems rather than the causes. In this process, elected officials and their staffs lose sight of the job that they were elected to do. | ||
| MILITARY | ||
| Photo #1 | Spending enough to maintain military superiority | |
| Photo #2 | Be prepared to use weapons of mass destruction no matter what the “collateral damage,” i.e. civilian deaths, may be. | |
| Among the most tragic of all unconscious human behaviors, warfare is a self-perpetuating, never-ending cycle of fear-driven, revenge-seeking act of madness. Nations, because of deep-seated, repressed collective shadow material must seek other nations and peoples upon whom to project those aspects of their own nature that they cannot accept and take responsibility for. | ||
Even these superficial glimpses of our institutions reveal grievous flaws that impact the quality of life for all Americans. These expressions of the false self are not the result of people who are in any way fundamentally unacceptable in character or morality but instead deeply unconscious.
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References and notes are available for this article.
For a much more in-depth discussion on Simple Reality, read Simple Reality: The Key to Serenity and Survival, by Roy Charles Henry, published in 2011.
